[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 5]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 7010]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                 RECOGNIZING USTAD RAHAT FATEH ALI KHAN

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. MICHAEL G. GRIMM

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 16, 2012

  Mr. GRIMM. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Mr. Ustad Rahat 
Fateh Ali Khan who is considered to be the ``Heart and Soul of Sufi 
Music.''
  Rahat Fateh Ali Khan was born on January 1, 1974 in Faisalabad, 
Pakistan to a prominent family of Classical musicians. He carries on 
the 700 year-old tradition of Qawwali, a form of Muslim Sufi devotional 
music.
  Rahat Fateh Ali Khan began his formal training in music at the age of 
seven and had his first performance by the age of nine. By 1997 he was 
considered the leader of Muslim Sufi music. As a result of his talent 
and devotion he has built a bridge between the East and the West--in 
March of 1998 he performed with Eddie Vedder in Los Angeles and has 
appeared many times in New York City to much critical acclaim. He has 
also worked on many movie soundtracks such as Dead Man Walking with 
Sean Penn, The Four Feathers with American composer James Horner and 
lastly with Mel Gibson in Apocalypto. He is also a renowned Bollywood 
playback singer. However, more important than his artistic acclaim, 
Rahat Fateh Ali Khan has been his been recognized numerous times over 
due to his selfless participation in benefit concerts all over the 
world.
  Mr. Speaker, please join me, my constituents and music lovers from 
around the world as I recognize Mr. Ustad Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, as he 
is the heart and soul of the world music community with billions of 
fans all over the globe.

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